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This coming Monday, June 1, will mark the third full month that bills are due since COVID-19 was declared a national state of emergency in March. To help Americans manage their finances, U.S. PIRG Education Fund has published an updated guide with tips on what to do about paying bills during the crisis.

Legislation to protect Californians from price gouging is one step closer to becoming law after Senate Bill 1196 (SB 1196) passed the Senate Committee on Public Safety Wednesday. Authored by State Sen. Thomas Umberg, the bill has bipartisan support in the legislature and is supported by consumer advocates, the Attorney General, and the California District Attorneys Association.

U.S. PIRG has joined leading consumer and banking organizations to applaud a bi-partisan Senate bill to broaden protections in the recent COVID-19 stimulus package. Under the CARES Act, Congress exempted Economic Impact Payments from offset for debts owed to federal and state agencies, except in the case of child support, but did not exempt them from court-ordered garnishment to pay creditors.

Consumer complaints to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) related to the coronavirus approached 50,000 on Tuesday. U.S. PIRG Education Fund has documented the actions taken by the FTC and 14 other federal agencies in response to coronavirus scams.

Today, CALPIRG delivered a letter to legislators and the governor, signed by 326 hospital repair experts, calling for manufacturers to stop withholding what technicians need to fix medical equipment like ventilators. It’s part of CALPIRG’s larger “Right to Repair” campaign, which aims to remove unnecessary barriers to repair which drive up costs for product owners and increase electronic waste.